


you're my nation (my revolution)

by thesurielofficial



Series: ATLA wlw week [3]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Childhood Friends, Episode: s03e14-15 The Boiling Rock, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Post-Episode: s03e14-15 The Boiling Rock, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, but it's in the past, no Azula redemption for this, one sided Azula/Ty Lee, sorry :((
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-09-23
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:07:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26621140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesurielofficial/pseuds/thesurielofficial
Summary: Mai is born with white lines outlining her spine and arms. She wears long sleeves and grows out her hair.Ty Lee is born with white throwing knives drawn into the skin of her ankles. She paints over the marks every morning.It doesn't make a difference to either of them. Until it does.Written for Day 3 of ATLA wlw week: Soulmates
Relationships: Mai & Zuko (Avatar), Mai/Ty Lee (Avatar)
Series: ATLA wlw week [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1931743
Comments: 5
Kudos: 85
Collections: AtLA WLW week 2020





	you're my nation (my revolution)

**Author's Note:**

> Title from Wasted Youth by FLETCHER because gay rights.

When Mai was born, she had lines over her body, following some kind of path. They were   
slightly thick but a part of her skin, as though someone had dipped a fingers in white paint and drawn smooth strokes, like leading lines. As Mai grew up, and her body grew too, the lines did not. She hated getting tanned, because the lines never changed and tanning made them more prominent. She grew her hair into bangs to cover up the arrow in the front. She wears long sleeves, long skirts and pants that cover up the lines tracing her arms and legs. She doesn’t know what the lines are for, but she knows she doesn’t like them very much.

Ty Lee has knives on her ankles. They’re thin white lines outlining a pair of crossed knives. Later, she learns that they are throwing knives. She’s heard of these marks before- soulmarks. Not everyone has them, and the Fire Nation generally frowns upon it. None of her sisters have marks. When Ty Lee meets Princess Azula, she decides to cover her marks as much as possible. It’s not that she’s ashamed of them, but she doesn’t really care for them either. Besides, if Azula got to know…it’s better for her to keep the marks hidden.

And for a while, it’s okay that Mai needs to cover up all the time and Ty Lee doesn’t mind her morning routine of painting over her mark after taking a bath.

But then they meet each other, and everything changes.

* * *

At first, Mai doesn’t really like Ty Lee. This does not mean she dislikes her, but she’s neutral. Just like she’s neutral about most things in her life. Ty Lee is just Azula’s friend after all. Besides, she’s incredibly bubbly and vivacious...she probably wouldn’t like Mai. Mai doesn’t mind being disliked. She doesn’t like many things herself. 

The three of them fall into a bit of a routine and Azula is their link. Mai doesn’t spend much time with Ty Lee without Azula. She doesn’t really want to either. Ty Lee talks too much, asks too many questions. Mai doesn’t like questions. They meet in the palace gardens every day, the three of them, and they do what friends would usually do- they talk, they train, Azula talks and they listen. 

But then one day, Azula doesn’t come and Mai is stuck with Ty Lee. Almost everything the three of them did was dependent on Azula. She doesn’t want to talk to _Ty Lee_. She wouldn’t even know what to say. 

“Hey, so it looks like Azula’s not here...” Ty Lee says, as though she’s implying something. Mai doesn’t understand what the girl means so she just nods. Ty Lee’s expression falls for a second before lighting up again. “Hey, wanna see something I’ve been working on?”

“Yes. Sure.”

“I can do this thing called chi-blocking!” Ty Lee exclaims, looking at Mai expectantly again. Mai doesn’t like expectations very much. 

“What’s chi-blocking?” she asks.

“Everyone has this energy flowing through their body called chi. I can disable it by striking at the right spots. It can paralyse a person and strip them of their bending! Pretty neat, huh?”

“Oh, does Azula know?” Mai asks. She’s been training with knives too, and only Azula knows. She wonders if perhaps Ty Lee has been doing the same thing. 

“Yeah. She actually said not to tell anyone yet. But I think it’s okay if I tell you. You’re her friend too. Besides, you’re _my_ friend.” 

“So where exactly are these lines of energy?” Mai asks, trying to ignore the part about them being friends. She doesn’t really have any friends, nor does she want them.

“Well, all throughout, really. Airbenders get their tattoos along the prominent chi lines- leading from the spine to above the head, to the backs of your palms, etc. I can show you, if you want,” Ty Lee says, holding out two fingers. Mai nods jerkily. Ty Lee draws a smooth line from the tip of Mai’s arrow to the middle of her back, then from her back to her palms, never touching skin. But Mai can feel those white scars tremble for some reason. She jerks away when Ty Lee stops. 

“I’m sorry, was that too much? I won’t block you, though. Promise!” Ty Lee looks apologetic, her grey eyes wide.

“I wasn’t afraid you would. I just...don't like being touched like that,” Mai admits. 

“I apologise again. I’m sorry, I can be a bit touchy. I’ll be more careful next time!” Mai almost smiles at the sincerity in that apology, but ends up just nodding awkwardly. 

“I- I like knives,” she blurts out, trying to diffuse the tension and awkwardness.

“What kind?” Ty Lee asks, as though she actually cares. That’s a nice thought. Mai doesn’t care about a lot of things, but she cares about her knives. It feels nice to know that someone else might too. 

“Throwing knives. Azula knows, but nobody else. I’ve been practicing for a while now- my aim’s pretty good.”

“Wow, Mai, that’s so cool! Can I see them?” Ty Lee asks, eyes wide.

Mai shakes her head. She doesn’t have any on her right now. Besides, they’re _her_ knives and she still isn't sure what she thinks of Ty Lee. She doesn’t want the girl touching her knives. Ty Lee looks a bit disappointed but cheerfully waves it off and starts talking about something else entirely. Mai listens, quietly. She decides she quite likes the sound of Ty Lee’s voice.

* * *

Ty Lee has a secret. It’s an obvious one, and nobody will ever call her out on it because she’s Princess Azula’s best friend. The thing is, she has Air Nomad lineage. It’s clear in her grey eyes. And the acrobatics, the chi-blocking- they’re all part of Air Nomad culture, in some way or the other. Ty Lee shares a love-hate relationship with her culture. She knows that it gives her an advantage, that it helps her learn more about her skills and use them more effectively. She also knows that all the airbenders were wiped out for a reason. 

Before she came to Caldera, she had found an old book of Air Nomad traditions with details, drawings, and explanations of chi, chakras, spirits, and even soulmarks.

Soulmarks are thin white lines that always stay on a person’s skin and never grow thicker, although they do grow larger. They provide clues as to who the person’s soulmate could be. There was a more detailed analysis of factors that decide who gets a soulmate, and who that soulmate would be, but Ty Lee hadn’t read beyond the first page. She was going to Caldera. The Fire Nation wouldn’t like someone with Air Nomad lineage who cares about this weak culture which should have ceased to exist a long time ago.

She hadn’t even planned on using her chi-blocking skills until Azula encouraged her and now she sees the value in using them. But there is no logical advantage of having a soulmark. She doesn’t like her mark, so she covers it up.

Besides, she doesn’t think that soulmarks matter much. The prettiest girl she’s seen is Azula and she doubts the knives are for her. A part of her thinks (knows) they’re for Mai but she doesn’t like Mai like that so she fantasises about it being Azula. Azula is kind to her, and she knows Mai doesn’t like Azula as much, so there’s always a bit of a divide. Besides, she doubts Mai would have a soulmark or that she’d care if she even knew what it was.

When Azula finds out that Ty Lee and Mai know about each other, she’s a little irritated. Ty Lee hasn’t really seen Azula annoyed before, and it scares her a bit. But then Azula smiles at the two of them, a little cruelly.

“Since you both decided to share your talents, why don’t you demonstrate them?” she suggests. Mai reaches for one of her throwing knives, when Azula adds, “on each other.” Ty Lee doesn’t understand why Azula would do this. Could she be jealous? Ty Lee isn’t sure how to react, Mai had flinched from her touch last time. She’d hate it if Ty lee tried to chi-block her. But Mai just rolls her eyes and picks up three knives. She smirks at Ty Lee and asks her to stand with her back against the wall. Ty Lee almost gapes, but she doesn’t want to show any weakness in front of Azula so she smiles and stands confidently.

Mai holds up the sharp-edged knives as if they’re harmless and throws them with the same bored air that she does anything. But they fly by Ty Lee so fast that she can barely see them. Ty Lee knows what it’s like to move as fast as the wind, but even her reflexes can barely make out the knives until they land with three consecutive thuds, right beside her arm. Had she moved her arm by even a hair, she would have been nicked. Mai smiles a satisfied smile and Azula smiles approvingly. Ty Lee’s immediately jealous.

“Am I supposed to chi-block her, then?” she asks, trying to be as nonchalant as possible.

“If you want to,” Azula says casually. Ty Lee knows she isn’t being casual. She gives Mai a look- of apology or permission, she isn’t sure- and Mai nods. She moves in to strike Mai, quickly jabbing at her arms, her legs, her stomach. Mai crumples to the ground in surprise, but she also looks like she...approves? Ty Lee doesn’t look at that for long though, because she immediately turns to Azula. 

She doesn’t see Mai’s slightly disappointed look when Ty Lee looks away. She doesn’t notice that for some reason, Mai’s arms aren’t paralysed.

* * *

Mai decides to figure out what the lines on her body mean. She thought Ty Lee would know, because she knew what she’d felt when Ty Lee touched her. She’d felt those lines shiver a bit, and then she knew that they had to mean something. She wants to ask Ty Lee, but she also doesn’t want to tell her. She scours through books in the library and finds nothing. She sits with scrolls around her when Azula’s brother finds her.

“What are you doing here?” he asks. 

“What do you think I’m doing in a library?” she replies.

“May I join you?” the boy asks. _Zuko._

“If you want to.” 

“What are you looking for?” he asks, taking a look at the variety of scrolls Mai’s going through.

“What business is it of yours?” she snaps.

“I can help. If it’s a forbidden topic, I might know where books about it are.” Hmm, that does sound interesting to Mai.

“Have you ever heard of white birthmarks? Thin white lines, like scars. I may have a theoretical interest in them,” she says. Zuko’s eyes widen and he looks around nervously.

“Yes, I might. They’re called, uh,” he lowers his voice, “soulmarks.”

“Soulmarks?”

“Shhh. Yes. They’re not a good thing, you know.”

“Well, why would I care about that? I just have an objective interest in them,” she replies, defensive. 

“I can lead you to books about them in a secret corridor. I’ll stand guard, and you need to be back in an hour, okay?”

“Why are you helping me?” she asks. She hasn’t really even spoken to him before.

“I don’t know. I think you’re nice. Besides, I’ve been in a pretty good mood since Uncle told me that I can sit in on a meeting tomorrow.” Zuko smiles at that. He seems like a good person, like he’s pure. When Mai enters the secret corridor that Zuko opens up for her, she decides that she quite likes Azula’s brother.

Perhaps they could be good friends.

* * *

Three years later, they are all reunited. Ty Lee left for a while, but she answers when Azula calls. She always does. Mai stayed with Azula, but she finds herself missing Zuko, which is odd because she never knew him that well. But his help gave her a lot of clarity about the soulmarks. 

In the first year of Zuko being gone, Mai had realised three things. The first one was that Ty Lee was her soulmate. The second was that she had fallen for the girl. The third was that Ty Lee was in love with Azula.

Mai’s okay with that, in a way. She knows of soulmate marks going only one way. She knows this because Fire Lord Sozin had Avatar Roku as his soulmate, but Avatar Roku did not have any soulmarks. 

Mai isn’t okay with it, in some other ways though. Azula has always used her friends. And Mai doesn’t mind it as much, because she doesn’t have anything better to do anyway. But Ty Lee? Ty Lee believes in Azula. She _trusts_ her. She doesn’t realise that Azula will always see them as allies and strategies before she sees them as friends. If Azula had been a kinder person, someone who deserved Ty Lee’s love, Mai would have been happy for them. But Mai can’t say anything, and so she doesn’t.

When Zuko comes back, she announces that they will be dating and he goes along with it. They kiss and Mai doesn’t really dislike it. She doesn’t like it either. One night, she tells him she loves Ty Lee and he tells her he knows. He tells her he likes men and she tells him that she knows. She shows him the lines on her arms and he shows her the sword with a water tribe symbol on his shoulder blade. They continue to date. 

Another night, he tells her he loves her and she believes him. She loves him too, just not in the way that everyone thinks she does. But that doesn’t make it any less valid. 

When they go to Ember Island, she sees Azula talking to Ty Lee and for a brief moment she thinks that perhaps Azula does return Ty Lee’s feelings. But then they’re all caught up in their own dramas and Mai realises that Zuko is right. She never lets herself feel emotions the way she should. She loves Ty Lee, but she never lets herself think about it. She’s angry at her parents, and she never lets herself think about it. She doesn’t trust Azula, but she’s too scared to think about that.

That night, she writes letters. She writes furious, honest letters and she tells people exactly what she thinks of them, all her emotions. She watches as Zuko turns them to ash. He leaves one aside, though- the one she wrote for Ty Lee. But she shakes her head and tears it into tiny pieces. Zuko looks sad for her, and she wants to yell at him, but what would she say? Would she tell him that Ty Lee has never loved her, that she’s known this truth for the three years that Zuko hadn’t even witnessed? 

She stays silent, and they fall asleep together, able to be who they are- two good friends. Sometimes, Mai thinks that Zuko’s one of the only people apart from Ty Lee who understands her. She understands him too, but usually not until it’s too late.

On the day of the Black Sun, there is a letter. 

She yells in frustration before reading it. She already knows its contents.

* * *

When Zuko comes back, Ty Lee feels conflicted. She’s known for a while now that Mai might be her soulmate. And she loves spending time with Mai. Before Azula had called her, she had exchanged letters with Mai for two years. When she returns, Azula is still the prettiest girl she’s ever seen. But beauty is superficial and for the first time, Ty Lee can see something darker underneath.

She wants to turn to Mai, and she wants to talk to Mai, but the girl seems so closed up in person, She finds herself missing her pen pal version of Mai who would write pages of information. She finds herself missing the version of Mai from two years ago, who actually spoke to her.

This new Mai spends most of her time with her boyfriend, Zuko. They kiss and they hold hands, and they’re always touching. Ty Lee doesn’t like that. She misses her friend. But Azula is there for her too, so she holds onto that fragile relationship. 

When Zuko leaves, she’s sad for Mai, but a selfish part of her doesn’t care as much because she finally gets to have her best friend back. And then they have to go to the Boiling Rock because Mai needs to see Zuko.

Mai tells Azula that she loves Zuko more than she fears her. Ty Lee betrays her oldest friend, the girl she’d been half in love with for a year, by chi-blocking her.

Mai and Ty Lee wind up in prison together.

Mai is as nonchalant as ever. They talk about everything but Azula and Zuko. Ty Lee befriends some Kyoshi Warriors and teaches them to chi-block. Mai doesn’t talk to them when they practice. Sometimes, she asks Ty Lee how it goes and listens to her reply. 

One day Ty Lee asks about whether what Mai had said about Zuko was true and Mai replies that it is. Mai asks Ty Lee if she was ever in love with Azula and Ty Lee says that she used to be. 

“Did you know you can’t chi-block my arms?” Mai brings up one day.

“That;s impossible, Mai,” Ty Lee says with a bit of a laugh.

“Well, then do it,” Mai challenges. Ty Lee jabs at her arms and gives her a second. Mai raises her hands. Ty Lee tries again, and fails. She doesn’t understand. 

“Pretty cool, huh?”

“How did you _do_ that?” Ty Lee asks, fascinated.

“I have soulmarks along my chi lines on my arms and one along my spine. I guess it helps,” Mai shrugs, as if her sentences didn’t just turn Ty Lee’s entire world upside down. All this while, Ty Lee has thought that Mai didn’t have soulmarks, and that she would have hated them if she’d had them anyway. 

“Hey, Nuo?” Ty Lee calls. “Can you chi-block Mai in the arm?” The Kyoshi Warrior obliges, but the results are vastly different. Mai doesn’t move her arm for ten minutes as she waits for the effects to pass. 

“I can’t chi-block you, but you can be chi-blocked?” Ty Lee states. Mai looks confused at first, and then horrified. _Oh, she knows._ “Agni, Mai, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done any of that. I know you love Zuko. I don’t want to come in between that, if it ever works out for you two. Being someone’s soulmate doesn’t have to mean anything.”

“What if I want it to?” Mai asks, her voice soft and raspy.

“Do you?”

“Ty Lee, I’ve been in love with you for three years now. I always thought you were in love with Azula. I love Zuko, but he’s just a friend. I want us to mean more than just that.” 

Ty Lee has never heard Mai sound so vulnerable before. She’s too much in shock to process what’s happening. 

“Me too. I love you too,” she says after a while, somehow getting the words out.

“Okay,” Mai replies softly.

“Okay,” Ty Lee says back.

“When we get out of here, can I kiss you?” Mai asks.

“You could kiss me right now,” Ty Lee answers.

“Okay,” Mai replies, laughing a little. She kisses Ty Lee on the cheek. “We’re getting out of here. I’ll kiss you properly, then. I promise.” 

“I’ll be holding you to that,” Ty Lee replies, surprised that she's able to form sentences at all while she’s so flustered.

“Good,” Mai says, smiling again. Ty Lee doesn’t think she’ll ever tire of her soulmate’s smile. She’s content with waiting for now. After all, Mai did make a promise.

**Author's Note:**

> Oops, this was a day late because I had a test. I've wanted to write Mailee as soulmates for a while now, and I've always wanted to write a fill-in for what happens to them after Boiling Rock. Glad I finally got to do it! And of course, I had to imply the Zukka because I'm a Zukka/Mailee solidarity stan. 
> 
> Comments and kudos are appreciated!!


End file.
